_Seasons Greetings_
Light bonfire to honor winter solstice
Holidays are cultural creations They are a way
to celebrate important events or values, and
they come into existence, transform and dts
appear as a culture s needs delate
Thanksgiving. Christmas. Kwaruaa. Chanukah
and even New Year's Day are all cultural creations
that help mark the passing of time But there are two
special days that transcend cultural limitations They
are Older and more Constant than all hymn- c
— the winter and summer solstice
Solstice are the days when the sun appears at its
highest or lowest in the sky They are cosmic rattier
than cultural, but many early cultures celebrated
them as important to all life. On every continent
except Antarctica there are prehistoric monuments
that exist to mark these days, and yet today we
hardly notice the passing o! the Solstice
For eons the light and warmth ol the sun set the
rhythm of life on this planet. As the sun rose ever
higher in the sky. the earth warmed plants sprung
up. trees regenerated and the long, cold nights grew
shorter By the time the sun reached its zenith (the
summer solstice) the earth was carpeted in a new
coat of green that would turn ever more lush and
bear fruits thanks to the sun s abundant light and
heat.
Each day alter the summer solstice the sun rises
a little lower and the days get a little shorter We
hardly notice it at first. The sun is still so high and
the earth, now warmed by months ot increasing sun
light, gets even warmer But the days are dwindling
By the time of the eguinox (the day when the length
of night and day are the same), plants and trees are
ripe with seed and fruit.
As the days continue to shorten, plants begin to
die off, trees shed their leaves, animals store up
food and fat for the coming winter and the sky is
filled with migrating birds
Finally, the sun reaches its lowest point, winter
solstice. It is the shortest day and longest night of
the year
In earlier limes bonfires would
be til. m part to ward oil the cold of
the long night, in pari as a way lo
call out to the sun and ask it to
return Through the long night
people would gather around the
fires and talk of the sun and of the
heat and light it gave to them.
They would wonder if perhaps one
day the sun would vanish forever
and take all life with it Through
the bdter cold of predawn they
waited ana watcned until the first (amt fttcker of sun
light touched the horizon
imagine their sense of toy and relmf when the sun
appeared to not go any lower
With our sc once and technology we know exact
ly why the sun appears to travel through the heav
ens We know that the sun is not going to go away,
at least in our lifetime We have the power to over
come the dark of long winter nights with the flick of a
light switch, and we can ward oft winter s chill by
Simply turning up the thermostat
Science and technology have given us the power
to overcome nature Unfortunately, they have also
driven a wedge between us and the natural world
that surrounds us
While the solstice goes by us unnoticed, it still
continues to set the rhythm tor the natural world that
surrounds us. Solstice is still a fixed point on the ca
cle of life It says to the natural world, This is as
good (or as bad] as it gets, but the wheel is still turn
mg "
We have the power to ignore the solstice, and
then are no compelling commercial reasons .why
we should observe its passing But perhaps if we
took a moment to light a candle (or a bonfire) on the
nights of Dec. 21 and 22. it would help us remember
that we are still very much a part of the natural
world
/tv Larry Haftl
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